Bear population on the rise

David Brown, a naturalist and professional animal tracker from Athol, said the black bear population in central Massachusetts is on the increase.

Brown, a frequent visitor to the Massachusetts Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary in Princeton, finds bear scat (droppings) at the sanctuary.

“It’s a new phenomenon here,” he said. “The first bear scat I found was on the north side of Wachusett Mountain 15 years ago. I track a lot in the Quabbin area. It’s increasingly common to find tracks and signs of bear. Clearly, the population is building.”

“We have a lot of things they like in this area — blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, wild black cherry. And with large mature forested areas rich in acorns, beech and hickory nuts, it’s a draw for the bear.”

At this time of the year the bear will eat just about anything, Brown said.

“They have a sweet tooth. There was a large black cherry drop this year and Princeton has a lot of wild cherry trees,” he said. “As long as there is food they’ll stick around.”

American black bears are omnivorous. On the menu are fruit, berries, grapes, grass, mice, squirrels and any other mammal it can catch. Birds, eggs, fish, frogs, ants and their larvae, honey and young bees are also favorites. Bears have a high tolerance for pain, and can withstand repeated stings from bees, Brown said.

“It takes a lot to discourage a bear from a food source. They are not stupid, but are stubborn and persistent and can figure things out,” he said.

Most of the black bears people are seeing are young “dispersing” males that have been encouraged by their mother and sisters to leave, Brown said. They go wandering in search for food.

“Once they know there’s a food source they will keep coming back. When puberty strikes and they start looking for females they may return to their original territory,” he noted.

“There’s enough food around Princeton which may encourage them to stay around for the winter.”

Up north, animals have stayed out of hibernation by making a career out of raiding bird feeders, Brown said. The black cherry drop is over, but the next major source of food is nuts so bears will stick around until that runs out, he said.

Browns said having a barking dog at the house is somewhat helpful in discouraging bears.

“Bears will go the path of least resistance,” he said.

Brown said bears are attracted to bird feeders, bird suet, trash and food left outdoors for pets. Bears also have been known to go into a barn in search of grain, he added.